Every week I will take a look at the weeks action in the Big 12, tomorrow will be the SEC. As always I want to stress to everyone I have no agenda or axe to grind. I follow the league very closely. I will simply offer up some random thoughts. Very random. Nothing scripted here, I just sit down and let it rip. Way too much actual work to be done to devote an entire day to making sure this comes out perfect.
The Oklahoma Sooners, who entered this season with huge expectations are now 1-2. Not only that they are licking their wounds after getting whipped at home in a battle with Ohio State. That win, a convincing one at that, sucked the bone marrow out of a lot of Sooner backers. I was in Kansas City this weekend for a wedding and met a die hard Sooner fan who was in town attending the same event and he was watching some action saturday night in the lobby bar at the Marriott where we were staying and frankly I thought he was going to puke. It seemed like Stoops club fell behind and just played catch up from that point on and there is no question this loss does nothing to help Stoops nick name of Big Game Bob. The Sooner's have a much needed weekend off and then come back for a big game against TCU.
TCU did what it had to go against a weak Iowa State club dispatching the Cyclones 41-20. Basically a confidence builder after the loss to the Hogs. Frankly I have a tough time taking much out of that game guys. Word is get is the Cyclones are not even up to their typical mediocre standards. Patterson's Horned Frogs have a friday night game this week against SMU and as I type this up I see them laying three touchdowns, in some shops with the hook. There was some bad news with Turpin going out with a knee injury. The kid is a play maker and they are the better club with him. It's the knee so who knows. SMU is no joke and won't roll over by any means here. Also a bragging rights recruiting game once again. Lot of those in Texas, and yes, despite the seemingly never ending oil gushers of talent it matters. Texas is like any state guys, there are the blue chip guys out there and then there are the BLUE CHIP guys, know what I mean?
Texas ventured out of Cal last saturday night and went down the the Bears in a real shoot out 50-43. I watched part of this game but admittedly not much. Hard to focus in a crowd of people huddled around a hotel bar. I know the defense made me cringe, well, if you call that crap defense. I saw a Cal player cross the goal line and it looked like he dropped the ball just as he was crossing or maybe even a tick before. Somehow that seems too stupid to comprehend. I think this was a prime time for Strong's team to take a step. This would have been a very quality road win for the Horns. Texas is off this weekend. The rubber is about to meet the road though. Their next two games will be against Oklahoma State and then Stoops Sooner's. Oh brother. They would not turn around now and lose three straight games would they?
Oklahoma State garnered a impressive home win against the Pitt Panthers coming out on top 45-38. Nice work by Gundy getting his kids focused and back on track after that mess against Central Michigan. Pitt is a good team and frankly I had the Panthers +6.5 so I just missed on it. Had a lot of that lately though. Weird game as there was a long delay in the fourth quarter because of lightning. I just wonder how huge that loss to CM will play out down the line. The Cowboys have a huge battle this weekend in Waco against the Bears. Right now I see the Cowboys catching 9.5 points. If you trust Baylor to lay those points with their defense, hmm. We'll see.
Baylor took out Rice 38-10. Yawn. I don't take much from that. What did amuse me was this. They have a gigantic kid, Shawn Oakman, The kid is 6-9 and goes about 290. Kind of hard to miss I would venture. Anyway, Oakman is suspended from the team right now and is not allowed in the Baylor locker room, period. Well this weekend the team is at Rice and who appears in the locker room but Oakman. Um, does Baylor not get this rules stuff yet? Who is in charge of this crap? But wait, it gets better. When asked about Oakman being in the locker room Interim head coach Jim Grobe was candid, I will give him credit for that, he said he did not know he was in the locker room. (kind of hard to miss this guy coach), and then made it more interesting by stating he would not know the player if he did meet him. Well, okay then. Listen, it doesn't make a shit to me. I have no ties to Baylor. I just know this program has had more than it's share of bad publicity and seems to me they need to be a little more on top of things. That's all. Like I said, they meet Gundy's Cowboys this weekend and they had better be ready to rumble.
Kansas State came off a bye week and just beat the living hell out of Florida Atlantic 63-7. I admit this is one of those games I came so close to going with a didn't. Damn. Snyder has a club that will be dangerous in league play. They opened up with a tough one at Stanford where they made a respectable showing against obviously a very good Cardinals team. This week they have what will basically be a scrimmage against Missouri State. This is a team to watch guys in my opinion. After thumping the Bears this weekend they have a big game at West Virginia on deck. I will be looking at that one very closely.
Texas Tech scored a ton, again, they put up a gaudy 59 points against Louisiana Tech, problem is their defense was once again leaky. Tech put up 45 on them. I know I sound like a broken record here but I just don't take teams seriously that play this kind of football. I like teams with balance. Just think what Bama or Louisville or Ohio State would score against this defense. It's frightening. 572 yards allowed to Louisiana Tech guys. Think about that. The Red Raiders are off until the 29th when they meet Kansas. Oh boy, gotta mark that on my calendar.
Kansas got pummeled at Memphis. I gave out the Tigers as a free play laying the points and yes, in hindsight I should have bumped it up. Always so easy to say after the fact isn't it guys. The game was just not competitive and what is really hard for the KU staff to swallow is the stubborn fact they turned the ball over a half dozen times. Good grief. Kansas if off this week. Probably a humane thing. Hoops is just around the corner fans.
Iowa State is off another convincing loss to TCU and all I really have to say at this point about the Cyclones is they better show well this weekend when they square off against the Spartans of San Jose State. They are back home in Ames and laying 6.5 points. The fans will be more than restless if they drop this one at home. Surely they won't. Will they? I mean the Hawkeyes lost at home to North Dakota State, surely the Cyclones will come through. Although most people don't realize, there is no monster shame at all in the loss by Iowa. The Bison are flat out good.
West Virginia was off. They host BYU is a home game this saturday against a BYU team smarting from a loss to the Bruins. The Mountaineers are laying 6.5 points. I like them to clear the number and win and set up a huge game against Bill Snyder and his Wildcats.
I have nothing to promote at the moment guys. Not a thing. I am frankly in a bunker mentality at the moment capping this weekends football. Yes, the Bama game was hard to digest. Up 18 and looking good. I said in my writeup they would pull away late and it was looking like that was how it would play out. Then, along with everyone, I watched as Ole Miss scored two touchdowns in about 18 seconds or something like that. Goofy ass bounce on an onside kick made the difference frankly between cashing the SEC game of the year and losing it. That is pretty cruel. But this is sports betting. There is nothing fair about it, never will be. You can either mope and feel sorry for yourself or pick yourself back up and go back to work. I choose the latter. Anyway, I am looking at a lot of college games right now. I have narrowed by list for the featured release to four games. Not going to rush a damn thing. When I know, you'll know.
Good luck this weekend guys. I will say one more thing. I believe for the 2,487th time in my ten years here. I don't expect any results but I will say it anyway because we see it repeatedly. They play four quarters in football. The game is not concluded until the game is over, officially. Have you EVER had a game you were winning at the half that you ultimately lost? Well of course you have. Have you EVER had a game you led going into the final quarter and lost? Well, of course you have. Have you EVER lost a game you had won in the final moments on a big play? Well, of course you have. WHY is it then that some feel the need to either crow about a winner or whine about a loss when the game still has yet to be played out. PLEASE STOP IT! There are many on this forum begging you to stop it. That kind of crap just dumbs down the whole forum. LET THE GAME BE PLAYED! Then you can boast about your genius or scream bloody murder because you lost a bet. But, your case will have more credibility if you speak after the game has ACTUALLY been played to it's natural conclusion. I was asked by some friends to say something, okay, done.
Take care guys.